Rafael dos Anjos has no desire to continue to be in the UFC lightweight rankings. Nearly a decade after his reign as the 155-pound champion, dos Anjos has called for the promotion to remove him from divisional contention.
Having competed and found success in both lightweight and welterweight, dos Anjos has bounced back and forth between the two weight classes since returning to his original division in 2020. Dos Anjos is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time but has seen his career slide as he has aged and tweeted his frustration with younger fighters calling out his name.
Former UFC champion Rafael dos Anjos calls for his removal from the lightweight division
Get me out of LW rankings. For you LW out there calling me out I don’t compete at LW now on. I have nothing to prove to nobody, I walk around 195 at 39 years old. There’s lots of fights that make sense to me at 170.
I want to fight in July @ufc get me back in that octagon.— Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) May 15, 2024
Former UFC champion Rafael dos Anjos struggled to remain consistent in a single weight class for several years but now appears determined to call the 170-pound division his home. Now 39 years old in 2024, dos Anjos expressed frustration with callouts from younger contenders looking to take his spot in the lightweight rankings.
In a May 14 tweet, the 32-16 fighter claimed he “walks around at 195” pounds and has no interest in cutting excess weight as he looks to close out his legendary career.
“Get me out of LW rankings. For you LW out there calling me out I don’t compete at LW [from] now on. I have nothing to prove to nobody, I walk around at 195 at 39 years old. There’s lots of fights that make sense to me at 170. I want to fight in July @ufc get me back in that Octagon.”
While no longer revered as an elite contender, dos Anjos reached the peak of his career in 2015 with a dominant championship win over Anthony Pettis at UFC 185. He would defend his title in his ensuing outing against Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone but lose his status as champion to Eddie Alvarez in 2016.
Despite fighting twice at welterweight since 2022, dos Anjos has remained in the UFC lightweight rankings since defeating Paul Felder in 2020. Since 2017, 10 of dos Anjos’ 14 fights have been at 170 pounds.
Former UFC champion Rafael dos Anjos wants to return in July
In the final segment of his statement, Rafael dos Anjos mentioned July as his targeted return timeline. Dos Anjos last competed at UFC 299, losing a decision to Mateusz Gamrot as a significant underdog despite winning the striking exchanges and knocking the Pole down in the first round.
Dos Anjos claimed to believe he has a myriad of options at welterweight but did not name any specific opponent he desires to face. The former champion, however, appears to only want to accept big-name opponents in the final few outings of his career.
In his last fight in the division, dos Anjos fought top-ranked contender Vicente Luque in the main event of UFC Vegas 78. Luque won the fight by unanimous decision, using his size and strength advantage to out-wrestle dos Anjos for the majority of the five-round bout.
About the author
Jaren Kawada is a freelance sports writer from Indianapolis, Indiana with a strong passion for MMA and sports betting. Kawada has also written for Sportskeeda MMA, FanSided MMA, and BetSided as a combat sports analyst.
Check out all the great content Total Apex Sports has to offer. Check us out on X @TotalApexSports and our other sites: Total Apex Sports Bets and Total Apex Fantasy
